At the Movies: Mercedes-Benz SL

Favorite Mercedes-Benz SL cameos from the past 60 years.

It's now been more than 60 years that Mercedes-Benz SL sports cars have been featured in Hollywood movies. Bet you can't name the first use. Could well be 1958's The Screaming Skull with John Hudson and Peggy Weber. Don't look for it on the Oscar list. But there were great SL movies too, like On the Beach, High Society, Bullitt, Play Misty for Me, Viva Las Vegas, Beverly Hills Cop, The Bucket List...and, would you believe, The Simpsons. To make note of both its history in Hollywood and the launch of the newest SL—properly called an R 231—Mercedes took us to Warner Bros. Studios to get a look at the generations of SLs.

1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL

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1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL

This is the beginning of the SL story, the race car that started the line. In five race outings it won four times including the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Done as both a Gullwing coupe and roadster, it was powered by a 3.0-liter, 170-bhp (DIN) inline 6. If you want to see the coupe version of this car in action, check it out on YouTube here.

1952 Mercedes-Benz 300SL

1957-1963 Mercedes-Benz 300SL

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1957-1963 Mercedes-Benz 300SL

Mercedes' U.S. importer, Max Hoffman, promised to buy 500 road-going SLs if Mercedes would produce them. That was the famed Gullwing, which was made from 1954-1957. From 1957 until 1963, Mercedes built the 300SL roadster, this very car first registered to actress Natalie Wood. The inline-6 was now at 215 bhp (DIN). For movie reviews, check out "Pillow Talk" with Doris Day, "It started with a Kiss" with Glenn Ford, "Cinderfella" with Jerry Lewis, "The Lost World" with Michael Rennie and "High Time" starring Bing Crosby.

1957-1963 Mercedes-Benz 300SL

1963-1971 Mercedes-Benz 280SL

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1963-1971 Mercedes-Benz 280SL

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This Mercedes SL is best known for its "pagoda" removable hardtop. The design offered a low roofline with added room for entry and exit. The 2.8-liter inline had 170 bhp (DIN) and these SLs in excellent condition now fetch up to $200,000. You can see my teenage heart throb, Sophia Loren, drive one in "Arabesque" (1966), Julie Andrews in "10" (1979), Richard Gere in "Intersection" (1994) or Kim Basinger in "The Door in the Floor" (2004).

1963-1971 Mercedes-Benz 280SL

1972-1989 Mercedes-Benz SL

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1972-1989 Mercedes-Benz SL

Mercedes produced the legendary R 107 for 18 years, assembling 237,287 examples. A variety of engines were used, but U.S. models only had V-8s, which came in 3.8-, 4.5- and 5.6-liter versions. Many of the new safety innovations were added during its lifespan, from ABS to airbags to 5-mph bumpers. Movie credits: Richard Gere in "American Gigolo" (1980), Barbara Carrera as a Bond Girl in "Never Say Never Again" (1983), Steve Martin in "L.A. Story" (1991) and Sharon Stone in "Casino" (1995).

1972-1989 Mercedes-Benz SL

1990-2002 Mercedes-Benz SL

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1990-2002 Mercedes-Benz SL

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When Mercedes replaced the R 107 SL with the R 129, it moved the bar up. Literally, with a roll bar that snapped up in case of a rollover. This SL was sold in the U.S. with a 3.2-liter inline-6, 5.0-liter V-8 or 6.0-liter V-12. This SL was in one of the great crash scenes of all time when Clint Eastwood drove it out of window from an exploding building in, "The Rookie" (1990), and after landing used the Mercedes ad line, "Engineered like no other car."

1990-2002 Mercedes-Benz SL

2003-2012 Mercedes-Benz SL

2003-2012 Mercedes-Benz SL

This most recent SL brought the folding hardtop to the SL line. It took 16 seconds to go from coupe to roadster in this SL, which was powered by V-8s and V-12s. What enthusiasts loved were the AMG versions, first the SL 55 AMG and then the SL 65 AMG with its whopping 612 bhp. You can see this R 230 SL in "S.W.A.T." with Samuel L. Jackson (2003), "Two for the Money" with Matthew McConaughey and Rene Russo (2005), "2012" with John Cusack (2009).

2003-2012 Mercedes-Benz SL

2013 Mercedes-Benz SL550

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2013 Mercedes-Benz SL550

And now we have the newest SL, the 550, known internally as the R 231, which is based on an all-aluminum chassis. The base engine is a 4.7-liter V-8 with 429 bhp and 516 lb.-ft. of torque, mated to a 7-speed automatic. Or go with the SL 63 AMG, which has 530 bhp and 590 lb.-ft. of torque. The Performance Package is even hotter, with 557 bhp and 664 lb.-ft. of torque. No doubt the SL550 will be making its movie debut soon.